TARDIS Bookstore: Festivities
by StormWolf10
Summary: AU. Part of the TARDIS Bookstore series. The Doctor and Rose spend their first Christmas together, but each family has traditions the other isn't too sure about...
1. Christmas Eve

**A/N: Christmas story in August. Who needs rules?! Part One of Four. If you've seen David Tennant in Nativity 2, you'll understand about the questionable jumpers…**

The Doctor sighed, looking around at the fake snow sprayed on the shop window, the paper chains and tinsel on the bookshelves. It was Christmas Eve, nearing lunch time which was when they were going to lock up the shop. It was just he and Rose in the bookstore, as Martha and Mickey had been roped into going to Martha's Aunt's up in Norwich, Donna was helping her Granddad and Jack was running round London trying to get last-minute presents.

"We might as well lock up now, Doctor," Rose piped up from her seat next to him. "No one's gonna be coming in, and we've got to be at Wilf's in an hour."

It was true. Every Christmas Eve, the Doctor went to Wilf's for the afternoon and evening. Donna and Sylvia went too, and Christmas Day was spent at Sylvia's. This year, however, while Rose was coming to Wilf's with the Doctor later that afternoon, the pair of them was actually heading to Jackie's for Christmas Day. With another sigh, the Doctor nodded and got to his feet.

"Suppose you're right," he conceded quietly. "We might as well get ready to go to Wilf's. Donna won't be happy if we're late."

**~StormWolf10~**

"Shouldn't we have bought something?" Rose asked, standing on the doorstep to Wilf's house.

The Doctor's brow furrowed.

"Well, other than the presents, no," he responded.

Rose blinked.

"Not even some food? Drink?" Rose prompted uncertainly.

The Doctor shook his head, chuckling slightly.

"Nah, Wilf will have that covered," the Doctor assured Rose with a grin. "I'd forgotten you haven't met Wilf before."

Rose still looked a little uncertain, but then the Doctor was knocking on the front door. They'd caught the bus to Wilf's home, and just twenty minutes after leaving the flat, they'd arrived. Wilf's house was modest, a terraced two-bed Chiswick home, and Rose waited nervously for the door to open. The Doctor slipped his hand into Rose's, and with a grin, rocked back on his heels. Moments later, the door opened to reveal an elderly man with white hair and stubble, dressed in a knitted Christmas jumper.

"Thomas!" Wilf announced happily, arms spread wide. "Good to see you!"

"You too, Wilf," the Doctor grinned, gratefully accepting a brief hug from the elderly man.

"And this must be Rose, yes?" Wilf asked as he let the Doctor go, smiling at Rose. "Donna's told me a lot about you."

Rose blushed, but couldn't help but smile at Wilf. The elderly man's eyes danced and glimmered with cheerfulness, and a moment later he was ushering them into the house. They hung their coats up on a coat rack and followed Wilf further into the house. Donna's strident tones could be heard coming from what Rose could only presume was the kitchen, along with another woman's voice, which Rose didn't recognise. Wilf just sighed and the Doctor chuckled.

"Donna and Sylvia still arguing, then?" the Doctor asked Wilf with a smirk.

Wilf nodded, rolling his eyes.

"They never stop," he told the Doctor, chuckling wryly. "Arguing about the damned mince pies now."

Wilf led them through to a reasonably sized kitchen diner where, sure enough, Donna was arguing with a blonde woman- Sylvia, Rose realised. Both Donna and Sylvia were wearing brightly-coloured knitted Christmas jumpers like Wilf's.

"Now stop it, you two, we have guests," Wilf told his daughter and granddaughter strictly.

Both Sylvia and Donna stopped bickering, turning to look over their shoulders at the Doctor and Rose.

"Oh. Hello, Doctor, Rose," Sylvia told them, forcing a smile. She was clearly still annoyed about the argument with Donna.

"Everything go alright at the bookstore today?" Donna asked.

Rose nodded, not failing to notice the flour streaked across Donna's face.

"Yeah, didn't have anyone in, though," the Doctor replied, sniffing. "Jack still out?"

"Yeah, he should be back soon, though," Donna replied.

The words had barely left her mouth when there was a bang on the door. Donna hurried to answer it, and returned a few moments later with a grinning Jack.

"You beat me here, then," he stated upon seeing the Doctor and Rose.

Rose nodded and the Doctor shrugged.

"If you _hadn't_ had left your shopping until the last minute…" the Doctor trailed off pointedly.

"Anyway," Wilf announced to everyone, clapping his hands together, "how about I get the kettle on? Sylvia, how're those mince pies coming along?"

"Almost ready to go in the oven," Sylvia replied, "if Donna hurried up and handed me the sugar."

Donna groaned, and all but threw the little Tupperware box of sugar at her Mum.

**~StormWolf10~**

Rose couldn't help but feel like she was intruding. She perched awkwardly on the sofa while everyone else was going about their business with practiced ease, sorting through the presents they'd brought along, making tea and handing out mince pies. They'd moved into the sitting room a few minutes after Jack had arrived, Sylvia only leaving the room once to return with freshly-baked mince pies. She'd already known that the Doctor going to Wilf's for Christmas was a regular tradition, and he usually stayed until Boxing Day, but this year he'd be going to Jackie's for Christmas Day and they'd have the flat to themselves on the 26th. However, Rose had learned from Wilf that Jack too was a regular, had been attending the annual Christmas gathering long before he'd begun flirting with Donna- and subsequently begun dating her. The Doctor had invited Jack along the first Christmas he'd been with Wilf, after discovering that Jack didn't really get on with his Mother. Wilf's house had become something of a safe haven for the two teenage boys, and it appeared that that had remained well into adulthood.

"Here you are, sweetheart," Wilf announced, startling Rose from her thoughts as he handed her a mug of tea.

"Thanks," Rose smiled, a little nervously.

If Wilf had noticed, he didn't bring it up. Instead, he smiled back and bustled over to his armchair. Donna and the Doctor were sorting out the presents beneath the tree, and Jack had commandeered the TV remote, much to Sylvia's dismay.

"Oh!" Sylvia said suddenly, eyes widening as she remembered something. "I almost forgot! Your jumpers!"

Rose blinked in confusion, and looked to the Doctor for guidance. The Doctor, however, had just frozen. Donna and Jack snorted at his shocked expression, laughing even harder as he began to shake his head, protesting.

"Really, Sylvia, that isn't necessary," he told the woman quickly. "Rose and I are quite happy in the jumpers we've got on."

Still confused, Rose looked down at the burgundy hoodie she was wearing before looking over at the Doctor's own dark blue hoodie.

"No, no," Sylvia announced, getting to her feet, "you know it's tradition. Dad, where did you put the jumpers?"

"Well, they're in the spare room," Wilf replied, slightly shocked himself.

Jack was laughing even harder now, although Donna was looking half-sympathetically, half-amused at Rose, who couldn't make head nor tail of the situation she was finding herself in.

"I don't know why you're laughing, Jack," Sylvia told the American calmly as she reached the sitting room door, "I've got you one too."

Jack's face fell, and the Doctor let out a triumphant "Ha!"

"There's no point protesting, son," Wilf told Jack in amusement as Sylvia disappeared upstairs, "Sylvia won't take no for an answer."

"What's going on?" Rose asked, finally finding her face.

Wilf, Donna, Jack and the Doctor all turned to look at her.

"Rose, you have to believe me, I didn't realise Sylvia would be so insistent," the Doctor told her quickly, eyes imploring her to understand.

"Ok," Rose replied slowly, brow still furrowed, "but what _is_ going on?"

"Sylvia has a thing about Christmas jumpers, I'm afraid," Wilf told Rose with a small smile. "It's our fault; we always got her a new jumper at Christmas. You think I'd be wearing _this_ thing if I had a choice?"

He picked at his own reindeer-adorned green and cream jumper and pulled a face, causing Donna to burst out laughing.

"Oh, right," Rose realised, "Christmas jumpers."

"It could be worse," Donna chipped in, turning to the Doctor. "You remember the year Mum got me, you and Jack matching jumpers?"

The Doctor snorted and Jack groaned.

"We were seventeen!" Jack complained. "How many seventeen year olds wear knitted Christmas jumpers, let alone knitted Christmas jumpers that match their friends'!"

"Now," Sylvia's voice announced, preceding her appearance by several seconds, "here we are."

She made her way into the front room, crossing to Jack, Rose and the Doctor, and handing them carefully wrapped parcels. Rose looked a little uncertain, but followed the two men in unwrapping the presents as Sylvia reclaimed her seat in the other armchair. Rose almost let out a sigh of relief when she saw her jumper; a burgundy affair with cream snowflakes on it. It wasn't as bad as she'd feared, and she managed to give Sylvia a genuine smile and 'thank you', which appeared to placate the woman. Just then, Donna caught Rose's eye, and winked. Oh. Well, Rose decided, she definitely owed Donna, then. Jack was doing his best not to grimace at his own festive green jumper with red sleeves while the Doctor didn't seem to be hiding the fact he was astounded at his own jumper; like Rose's, it was burgundy and cream with bits of dark blue. It had cream on its cuffs and neckline, a pattern of burgundy and blue on cream, the pattern repeated several times on the upper chest and lower portion of the sleeves, while the rest was plain burgundy. It wasn't a bad jumper, but the Doctor didn't _wear_ jumpers, not really. And so Rose was even more surprised when he tugged off his dark blue hoodie and slipped the new Christmas jumper on. Jack did the same, leaving Rose little choice to comply.

"Perfect!" Sylvia announced happily once everyone was wearing their jumpers.

**~StormWolf10~**

Tea was a pleasant, if shocking, affair. Apparently, as per tradition, the dinner was more of a buffet-style thing, meat and potatoes and vegetables put in the middle of the table for them to help themselves. If this was their Christmas Eve dinner, Rose couldn't help but wonder what they were like on Christmas Day. Again, everyone but her seemed relaxed, although Donna and the Doctor kept flashing her reassuring smiles, and Wilf was very friendly.

"You used to help the Doctor in the shop, yeah?" Rose asked Wilf conversationally as they began to eat.

"When he first started out, yes," Wilf nodded. "He couldn't afford to hire any more people until he had the shop up and running and, well, it got me out of the house."

"Are you interested in that sort of thing? Sci-fi?" Rose questioned.

Wilf cocked his head to one side, thinking.

"I'm not opposed to it," he said after a few moments. "I mean, I'll watch Star Trek and Star Wars if it's on, but I wouldn't purposefully look for it in the TV guide. I'm more into Astronomy, see."

Rose nodded. Before she could question Wilf further, Jack was insisting they break out a bottle of wine, which no one seemed to object to. Part of Rose was very conscious of how her Mum would be furious if she and the Doctor turned up the next morning with a hangover, but then Jack appeared with a bottle of red, and she couldn't help but decide that one glass won't hurt.

**~StormWolf10~**

It was hours later that, at almost eleven at night, Rose and the Doctor were bidding goodbye to the others. Jack and Donna were heading back to Sylvia's for the night (much to Jack's dismay), but didn't seem ready to leave Wilf's just yet. Sylvia bids goodbye from the front room, as does Jack, but Donna and Wilf see them to the door.

"I hope Sylvia wasn't too forward," Wilf told Rose worriedly with a concerned smile.

"It was fine," Rose assured the kindly man with a smile. "The jumper did make me feel a little like I was having Christmas with the Weasleys, but hey."

Donna chuckled at that, nodding.

"I managed to get Mum to buy you an alright jumper, you should've seen the other one she suggested!" Donna told her friend conspiratorially.

Rose snorted.

"Not sure I want to!" Rose laughed.

"Well," the Doctor announced, arm over Rose's shoulder, "we'd better get going else we'll miss the bus."

"You ring me when you get back to the flat, Thomas," Wilf told the Doctor, suddenly serious. "Let me know you got back safely with that woman of yours."

Rose blushed, but the Doctor nodded seriously.

"Will do, Wilf," he assured the man. "And thanks for the night."

"Absolutely no problem," Wilf smiled, "and you two are welcome here any time, you know."

The Doctor and Rose nodded, and began making their way down the road to the bus station.


	2. Christmas Day

**A/N: Almost 3000 words long, this chapter… Wow. Anyway, part Two of Four here. So, uh, read and review!**

"Doctor?"

The Doctor groaned, shifting under the heavy duvet.

"Doctor?" the voice asked again.

Again, the Doctor groaned.

"Doctor? Wake up!"

With another groan, the Doctor cracked one eye open. He was met with the beaming smile and twinkling eyes of Rose Tyler as she straddled his chest.

"'S Christmas day," she informed him happily.

Despite his tiredness, he couldn't help but grin, and he cracked his other eye open to take her in completely.

"What time've we gotta be at your Mum's?" the Doctor asked tiredly.

"I said about ten," Rose replied, wrinkling her nose.

The Doctor nodded. It wasn't that he was looking forward to visiting Jackie, quite the opposite in fact; he was worried. He had no doubt that Rose and Jackie had their own little Christmas traditions, like he and Donna and Wilf and Sylvia with the Christmas jumpers. He'd seen how nervous Rose had been at Wilf's, with all the traditions that she had no idea about, that he'd forgotten to warn her about. He couldn't help but wonder if the tables would reverse and he'd be in the same position today. Rose, however, didn't seem to sense his uneasiness, as she hopped off his chest and began padding round the bedroom.

"We've got two hours or so before we have to be at Mum's," Rose continued conversationally as the Doctor sat up in bed, "thought we could have a fry up for breakfast, and maybe… Maybe open a few presents?"

At the last sentence, she stilled, looking to the Doctor uncertainly. She wasn't sure how he wanted to do this, whether he was one of those people who usually waited until after dinner to open their presents or if he was- like, Rose and Jackie- one who tore into their presents as soon as they were awake.

"That would be good," the Doctor nodded, sat on the edge of the bed. "We can take most of them to your Mum's to open, but there's a couple I thought you might want to open here."

Rose grinned and nodded, grabbing her dressing gown.

"I'm gonna go put the kettle on," she informed him happily, already halfway out of the room.

The Doctor watched her go with a small smile. Once Rose was out of sight and the bedroom door was shut behind her, he surveyed the bedroom carefully. The plain white walls were still mostly bare, particularly the one opposite the bed that only boasted his framed 'Manhattan Transfer' poster, but on the wall near the door now hung a mirror. On the opposite side of the doorframe were several framed photos. The frames didn't match; they were old frames that had been lying in drawers, or boxes, that the Doctor had dug out. The frames held photos of them and their friends, all of them taken in the TARDIS Bookstore. There was a photo of the Doctor and Rose in their Halloween costumes, a photo of all of them shortly after they'd begun dating one another, a photo of Jack and the Doctor, a photo of Donna and Rose. Rose's hairdryer lay forgotten on top of a chest of drawers, along with a pair of hair straighteners. A pair of her trainers peeked out from under the bed, some of her clothes could be seen in a half-opened drawer. The Doctor and Rose had been dancing around the whole 'moving in together' thing for weeks now, both a little too worried, a little too scared that everything would go wrong if they committed fully. The Doctor was scared the same thing would happen to Rose as with his Dad and Uncles and cousins (although he doubted Rose would be setting off fireworks in the flat), and Rose was scared of sharing a flat with someone full-time after her experiences with Jimmy. But they were getting there. In their own special way, they were working towards that goal. Rose stayed at the Doctor's more often than not, particularly as the nights had become darker and colder, but neither of them were quite ready for that final push, the final moving of the rest of Rose's possessions into the flat. The Doctor could hear the kettle boiling, hear Rose humming some Christmas song and, with a sigh, got to his feet.

**~StormWolf10~**

Despite not being at their flat much for Christmas, the Doctor and Rose had still decorated it. A large fake Christmas tree stood beside the TV, tinsel and baubles adorning it. Presents were piled beneath it despite the fact most of them would have to be packed up and carted round to Jackie's soon. Rose had produced a Santa hat from somewhere, jamming it on the Doctor's head, and she herself had a pair of reindeer antlers on. Tinsel was hanging over the framed posters, making everything look much more festive. Although they hadn't officially moved in together, the Doctor and Rose also had a lot of Christmas cards addressed to the pair of them; they'd received a card from Jack and Donna, one from Martha and Mickey, one from Adam (addressed to all of them in the shop, actually, but it had somehow found its way into the flat instead), one from Jackie, one from Sylvia, one from Wilf, and even a few regular customers had sent them cards. All the cards were scattered across bookshelves and work surfaces, cluttering up the space. It was all very… domestic, the Doctor decided, made him realise he didn't live alone anymore. It was an odd feeling, but one he didn't object to.

"I thought you'd like to open these presents before you go to your Mum's," the Doctor told Rose nervously, presenting her with a stack of somewhat floppy and- truth be told- badly wrapped presents.

Rose looked a little nervous, and shyly took the presents before presenting the Doctor with a few presents of his own. One was a large present that had been leant against the wall, and the Doctor wondered how he'd missed it.

"We opening them separately?" Rose asked.

The Doctor shrugged.

"If you want to," he told her, "but I always feel a little uneasy when people watch me unwrap my presents."

Rose's shoulders sagged in relief.

"Me too," she told him with a relieved smile. "'S the one thing I hate about my birthday."

So the pair of them sat, cross legged on the floor like children, the Christmas tree beside them as they tore into the wrapping paper. The Doctor, like an eager child, went straight for his big present, beaming from ear to ear when he unwrapped it.

"Where did you get this?" he asked Rose in delight.

Rose smiled.

"Internet," she responded happily. "Took ages to find the poster I wanted, though."

The present was a framed vintage Star Wars Episode IV poster, with Luke, Leia and Han Solo in the centre. Grinning, the Doctor began looking around for a spot to hang it. While he was busy with that, Rose was unwrapping her own presents. She laughed happily when she realised what the Doctor had gotten her.

"Are they alright?" he asked, grin fading slightly as he watched her carefully.

"They're great!" Rose assured him happily, holding up the blue Superman logo t-shirt. "How'd you know I'd want them?"

"Well, you said you liked mine," the Doctor shrugged, still a little worried, "so I figured I'd buy you some of your own. As much as I love you wearing my t-shirts, I'd like to wear them myself sometimes!"

After a few moments, they continued unwrapping their presents, but the Doctor was far more worried checking Rose was alright with the stuff he got her to do much more than smile gratefully at the jumpers and graphic novels and Batman belt Rose had bought him. He wasn't sure if he'd overstepped the mark, assumed too much that Rose would want Batman and Superman t-shirts, so he was even more relieved when she happily announced she was going to wear one of them to her Mother's.

"We'd better be getting dressed and ready to go," Rose told him, getting to her feet, "else we'll be late."

The Doctor nodded and, as Rose went off to get dressed, he quickly tidied up their rubbish and did the washing up before getting dressed himself. Barely fifteen minutes later, they were out the door.

**~StormWolf10~**

It had been a slightly creepy walk to Jackie's, if the Doctor was honest. The place was like a ghost town. London was usually so busy, the hustle and bustle of everyday life as people pushed past each other on the pavement, spilling over into the roads. But they hardly saw a soul. The presents packed into two rucksacks, they more hiked than walked to Jackie's, and were soon trudging up the stairs in Bucknall House. The two of them chatted happily, huddled in their coats and scarves, noses red from the cold.

"Oh, there you two are!" Jackie announced happily when Rose knocked on the front door. "Come in, come in."

They were quickly ushered into the sitting room. A slightly sorry-looking Christmas tree was in the corner of the room, a few presents scattered beneath it. Jackie happily took their coats, hanging them up in the hallway for them as she nattered away.

"An' Bev's got that new fella going to hers for Christmas. I told her it wasn't a good idea, but she was insistent. So I said 'on your head be it'…" Jackie nattered away, walking into the kitchen to begin making some tea for everyone.

There was the clunking of cups and a cupboard door being shut. The Doctor sat awkwardly on the sofa, stripped down to his faded Captain America hoodie and twiddling his thumbs. Rose, meanwhile, was surveying the presents under the tree with narrowed eyes.

"Mum, have you not opened any of your presents?" Rose called into the kitchen, brow furrowed.

"Of course not!" came Jackie's reply. "You weren't here."

The Doctor sat up a little at that, his own brow furrowing.

"Jackie, you didn't have to wait for us," he told the woman as she came back in with three mugs of tea.

"Well what else was I going to do?" Jackie asked indignantly. "Sit here opening them on my own?"

She had a point. Rose ducked her head, brow still furrowed. She'd never felt so guilty.

"Now," Jackie continued, already moving towards the tree, "how about we stop this moping and open the presents, yeah? Dunno about you two, but I've never had to wait so long to open my presents!" Jackie glanced at the Doctor before nodding towards Rose as she continued: "_This one_ was always up at seven on the dot, demanding her presents immediately."

Despite pretending to be annoyed about that, Jackie had a soft smile on her face. They were clearly fond memories. The Doctor closed his eyes momentarily as Rose moved to add the presents they'd brought along to the ones beneath the tree. They'd been there less than fifteen minutes and he'd already managed to destroy a Christmas tradition for Rose and her mother. But then Rose had taken hold of his hand, and was tugging him onto the floor.

"C'mon," she told him with a small smile, "no point sittin' up there on your own."

The Doctor sat in a sort of awkward silence as Jackie and Rose chatted and laughed and sorted out the presents into piles with their names on. A few minutes later, Rose presented the Doctor with a pile of presents. He blinked. He hadn't been expecting so many, he'd already opened a few of Rose's at their flat. But before he could question it, Jackie and Rose were talking again, pointing out certain presents as they began tearing into the wrapping paper. It was all stuff like "Oh, that's from me and the Doctor, Mum," and "That's from cousin Mo." Not wanting to be left out, the Doctor began unwrapping his presents too, slightly surprised that Jackie had gotten him what looked to be a fairly large present. He was even more shocked when he opened it.

"Oh, thanks Jackie!" he told her happily, a little surprised.

"Is it alright?" Jackie asked worriedly. "I wasn't sure what to get you, I mean, you own a shop specialising in that sort of thing."

"No, no, it's great," the Doctor grinned.

Rose looked over at the present in question, and couldn't help let out a laugh when she saw it. It was a white leather messenger bag with blue detailing on to make it look like R2 D2.

"Oh, that's brilliant!" Rose laughed, only halfway through unwrapping her own presents.

**~StormWolf10~**

Christmas dinner, the Doctor soon realised, was eaten at 1 o'clock sharp. He wasn't quite sure how he felt about that, at Wilf's they always had it mid-afternoon, after the Queen's speech. Jackie and Rose seemed less bothered about listening to the Queen's speech, and the Doctor wasn't fussed, just a little surprised. He'd quickly realised that, with just the two of them for so many years, Jackie and Rose had fallen into traditions they hadn't even realised; they opened their presents in the morning together, they had the dinner virtually at lunch time, there were boxes and cards and envelopes strewn over the floor but it wouldn't be tidied up until much later. But still, the Doctor found himself enjoying the day immensely, even if the traditions threw him a little; they were now seated around the small dining table that took up a portion of the sitting room, the Doctor and Rose sat side by side as Jackie sat at one end of the table. They pulled Christmas crackers, reading out the awful jokes and wearing the paper crowns, laughing and chatting and joking throughout dinner. In fact, the Doctor realised later, he hadn't stopped grinning for ages. Rose was beaming away too, and Jackie was watching them with a happy, relieved smile. Rose was wearing the jumper Sylvia had given her the day before, chatting away with her Mum about how she'd found the idea of Christmas jumpers just plain… Odd. Jackie had shrugged, replying "Each to their own."

"We'll do the washing up, Jackie," the Doctor announced once Christmas dinner was over.

"Oh, I couldn't ask you to do that," Jackie told him with a frown. "You're a guest."

"You're not asking me to do it," the Doctor responded quietly, "I'm telling you we'll do it."

Jackie smiled gratefully at him, and helped he and Rose carry the plates out to the kitchen. Jackie then hovered nervously for a few moments before ultimately deciding they could cope with some washing up. They heard the TV come on in the sitting room as the Doctor filled the washing up bowl with hot water.

"So," the Doctor piped up eventually, glancing over at Rose, "Donna and Jack got you that star necklace, yeah?"

Rose nodded as she scraped the remains of the turkey onto a plate and covered it with cling film, moving to put it in the small fridge. She then froze.

"Did we get _them_ anything?" she asked worriedly.

The Doctor flashed her a smile and nodded.

"Yeah. We got Jack a Captain America wallet and Donna that Sex and the City DVD." The Doctor responded.

Rose let out a sigh of relief.

"And Martha and Mickey?" she prompted warily.

"Martha and Mickey are looking to get a flat together, so we gave them a gift voucher. They can put it towards furniture." The Doctor replied.

"Good." Rose nodded happily to herself, moving to begin drying up the dishes the Doctor had just washed up.

They stood in a companionable silence, washing the dishes for several minutes before the Doctor spoke.

"Rose?" he asked slowly.

"Yeah?" Rose responded.

"How're we gonna get all those presents back to the flat?" he asked nervously. "I mean, they won't all fit, will they?"

"Mum only got me a few t-shirts and stuff," Rose shrugged. "They'll fold quite small. I got a few books, as did you, plus Mum got you that bag. I got the necklace from Jack and Donna, that's small… We'll be fine."

**~StormWolf10~**

They spent the rest of the day playing board games and watching TV- yet another tradition in the Tyler household, it seemed-, before the Doctor and Rose finally headed back to the flat at half ten. Jackie packed them off with pieces of Christmas cake and some turkey and bacon for sandwiches the next day, telling them not to phone because she was going round Bev's for the day. They walked back in almost-silence, both a little too full from all the sweets and nuts they'd ate throughout the afternoon.

"Dunno about you, but I think I won't be long out of bed tonight," the Doctor told Rose as they let themselves into the shop, locking the door behind them as they made their way to the office.

"Me too," Rose yawned as they trudged through the office and up the stairs. "I never realised Christmas could be so tiring; going to Wilf's yesterday, Mum's today… At least we've got tomorrow together."

The Doctor hummed in agreement. They were up the top of the stairs, and he unlocked the flat door, ushering Rose inside.

"What're we doing for new year?" Rose asked suddenly, dumping the rucksack of presents just inside the door.

"Dunno yet," the Doctor replied as he flicked the light on. "Why?"

"Just wondered," Rose responded, shrugging. "I'm gonna head into bed. You coming?"

The Doctor yawned, scratched his neck and nodded, padding after her to the bathroom. Within minutes, they were falling into bed, barely able to get out of their clothes and into their pyjamas first. The moment their heads hit the pillow, they were both sound asleep.


	3. New Year's Eve

**A/N: Sorry for the wait on this chapter! It actually seems to have ended up being more about Jackie and Sylvia I think, but hey…**

By the time New Year rolled around, Martha and Mickey were back from Norwich. Donna had rung them up almost immediately, inviting them to a New Year's party that she was throwing, and they agreed. Somehow, the Doctor and Rose got roped into it too, Wilf even insisting they brought Jackie along. And so, the Doctor, Rose and Jackie made their way over to Sylvia's home in Chiswick at eight pm on December 31st, bundled up in coats and scarves and gloves to try and fight off the bitter chill. The moment they reached Sylvia's house, they were ushered inside by a grinning Wilf wearing reindeer antlers and a- slightly tipsy- Donna.

"Come in! Jack's just opened another bottle of wine!" Donna announced happily, all but dragging Rose in by the arm.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow and glanced at Wilf, who just shook his head and shrugged sympathetically.

"Is _another_ bottle of wine really _needed_?" the Doctor muttered under his breath, taking in his bookkeeper slash friend slash assistant manager slash whatever Donna exactly was, noting how she was actually, more than a bit inebriated.

Jackie looked a little uncertain as she was led into Sylvia's home, and she became even more uncertain when she saw the inside of the house. The furniture in the Nobles' home was in no way new, but had clearly cost a fair bit when it had been bought. In the front room was a bookcase filled with leather-bound Dickens books and Shakespeare plays, and there were miniature glass animals on the mantelpiece. Jackie sniffed, a little unsure it was such a good idea her coming along, but then Rose returned from wherever Donna had dragged her, pressing a glass of wine into her Mum's hand.

"You alright, Mum?" Rose asked a little worriedly. "You look… I dunno, just odd."

Jackie forced herself to smile.

"No, I'm fine, love," she responded quickly, "just having a nose around."

Rose looked unconvinced, but nodded anyway.

"Well, everyone else is in the kitchen at the moment. You know Donna, of course, but Martha and Mickey and Jack are here too. Wanna come and meet them?"

Jackie nodded, even though what she wanted to do was go home; she had nothing in common with this family, they were clearly better off, and quite frankly all the nice furniture and ornaments were starting to make her feel a little out of place. However, she allowed Rose to lead her to the kitchen-diner, where everyone else was laughing and joking. Within moments, Rose was back at the Doctor's side, looking relaxed and happy as she introduced her Mum to everyone else.

"Mum, this is Jack, an' Mickey and Martha," Rose explained, gesturing at each of them in turn. "Guys, this is my Mum."

There were murmured hellos exchanged, as well as smiles and handshakes as Jackie was introduced to Donna's Mother and Granddad too, and then Donna was announcing that they should all move into the front room, put some music on, or something. As they hurried off, Jackie stayed in the kitchen, watching Sylvia nervously.

"So," Jackie piped up eventually, forcing a weak smile, "nice house you have here."

"Thank you," Sylvia smiled, although she seemed a little wary of the other woman. "Donna tells me you live on the Powell Estate?"

Jackie's smile froze, and she just about managed to stop it changing to a grimace.

"Yeah," she replied slowly, unsure she liked where the conversation could head.

"That must be hard," Sylvia continued, sympathy in her eyes.

Immediately, Jackie's gaze softened, and she nodded.

"Yeah, well, not the most ideal place to live," Jackie admitted, looking away for a few moments. "I mean, a lot of my friends are there, and Rose's friends from school, so that's nice, but… Not a particularly nice area."

Jackie took a big gulp of her wine, and she and Sylvia descended into silence for a few moments.

"I heard you lost your husband when Rose was just a baby," Sylvia continued. "That must have been horrible."

Jackie's eyes narrowed at that, her defences rising as she tried to work out just why Sylvia was bringing it up.

"I lost my husband, Geoff, a few years ago," Sylvia continued, pouring herself a glass of wine and topping Jackie's glass up. "It was… tough. Bills to pay, funeral to sort out, family to inform… I had Donna's help, of course, she was the one who helped me keep it together, really. Her and Dad… I can't imagine what it must have been like with a baby to care for."

Jackie met Sylvia's gaze and suddenly, she realised that she had more in common with this woman than she'd initially thought. She gave a small nod, and Sylvia gestured to the kitchen table.

"Shall we take a seat?" she asked Jackie with a smile.

**~StormWolf10~**

"We have fireworks, for midnight," Donna slurred happily from her position on the sofa next to Jack.

"Yeah, but it's probably best if we let someone a little more sober set them off, yeah?" Martha suggested with a wry smile.

Donna snorted, waving her hand at Martha.

"Whatever you say, Doctor Jones," she responded with a small giggle.

"I'm not a doctor yet!" Martha reminded her friends. "Not for another six or seven months."

"Yeah, but it's still soon," Rose chipped in from her position on the floor between the Doctor's legs. "And then we'll have a _real_ doctor!"

"Oi!" the Doctor complained, mock-offended.

The group of friends began laughing then, ignoring the trashy New Year show on the TV, which was supposedly the 'best moments' of the past year, although just seemed to be a bunch of very not-funny TV clips from reality shows.

"What time is it anyway?" Jack asked suddenly, brow furrowed. "And where's Wilf?"

"It's quarter to eleven," Mickey replied with a yawn. "Almost time for the fireworks."

"And Granddad's in the garden with his telescope," Donna responded, taking another sip of wine.

"In this weather?" Rose asked, concerned.

Donna nodded.

"Mum hates it. Says he's gonna get pneumonia if he carries on," Donna announced. "He says he wraps up warm, but that's not the point."

"Maybe I should go check on him?" the Doctor suggested, shifting his way out from behind Rose and making to stand.

The group watched him leave, and the Doctor made for the back door. However, as he walked through the kitchen, he saw Jackie and Sylvia chatting together, an empty bottle of wine between them.

"I know he looks far too skinny for his own good," Jackie was slurring, waving her hand as she spoke, "but he seems to make my Rose happy. And after Jimmy, I didn't think she'd ever settle into a relationship, so I'm just grateful."

Sylvia hummed in agreement before somewhat drunkenly adding her own view into the conversation.

"I just wish he'd stop wearing that blasted pinstripe suit all the time!" she told Jackie, leaning across the table as she spoke. "I mean, he has jeans and t-shirts and hoodies, he wears them when he's not in the shop, and he used to wear them all the time when he was younger, when he lived with my Dad. But then he bought that damned suit, and liked it so much that he bought more and just kept wearing them! I think he thinks it makes him look professional in the shop, but really, it's just a bookstore, isn't it?"

"Are you two talking about me?" the Doctor asked in confusion, frowning at the two women.

Both Sylvia and Jackie blinked and turned to look at him.

"Maybe," Sylvia slurred with a crooked smile. "Maybe not."

The Doctor just rolled his eyes and left the two women to it, heading out into the garden.

"Hello, Wilf," he greeted the old man as he crossed to the garden chair Wilf was sat on behind his telescope.

"Hello, Thomas," Wilf greeted with a smile. "You alright?"

"Yeah," the Doctor nodded. "Sylvia and Jackie are drunk though, and they appear to be discussing me. Or, more accurately, their dislike for my suit."

Wilf chuckled at that.

"Well then, maybe you should start dressing more casually again," Wilf suggested, watching as the Doctor pulled up a chair and sat down.

"But you said it suited me!" the Doctor responded, wide-eyed.

"It does," Wilf nodded, "but so do jeans and t-shirts." Wilf then glanced over at the man. "You know, Rose will love you whatever you wear."

The Doctor nodded.

"I know."

The two men descended into silence, staring up at the inky black sky.

"Doesn't look like there's many stars out tonight," the Doctor noted, gazing up at the sky.

Wilf chuckled again.

"There's not," the older man responded, "but Donna put that awful programme on about the TV in the past year. You know I hate those programmes. And Jackie and Sylvia seemed happy gossiping, so…"

"So you thought you'd escape into the garden?" the Doctor asked with a grin.

"Exactly!" Wilf told him with a wide smile.

"Well, as much as I'd love to leave you to your little escape out here, the others were worried about you being out here in this cold. Sylvia and Donna would have my head if they knew I left you out here," the Doctor told the man knowingly.

Wilf sighed.

"Alright then," the man replied, getting to his feet. "Give me a hand packing this up, and I'll head in."

Dutifully, the Doctor got to his feet, helping Wilf begin to pack up his telescope.

**~StormWolf10~**

At quarter to midnight, the group filed outside to set up the fireworks. Jackie and Sylvia declined, deciding to stay indoors in the warm with another bottle of white wine. Donna was a little tipsy, giggling and trying to slap Jack on the bum while he, Mickey and the Doctor set up the fireworks. They were all huddled in their coats, and while the fireworks were being set up, Wilf gave Rose and Martha a crash course in star constellations. Soon, however, the fireworks were ready, and Jack set the touch paper while everyone stood just by the back doors. As the fireworks began going off, the Doctor slipped his arm around Rose's waist, pulling her closer. He saw Mickey do the same to Martha, while Jack had his arm around Donna's shoulder. And as, all along the street, others set off their own fireworks to commemorate the start of the new year, Rose and the Doctor didn't notice; they were too busy kissing.


	4. New Year's Day

**A/N: Part 4 of 4! This chapter begins hinting at things that even Rose has yet to discover (mainly, the money thing. It won't actually be revealed until later…) Anywho, enjoy! ;)**

New Year's Day was quiet. Much like Boxing Day, the Doctor and Rose were alone in their own flat, lounging on the sofa and watching whatever films were on TV. They sat in companionable silence, as day melted into early evening, the Doctor occasionally making a remark about the characters in the film they were watching, or Rose asking if he wanted a drink as she was making herself one. Other than that, they were silent. They'd sloped into their flat at almost half one that morning, the Doctor having deemed it necessary to take- an admittedly drunk- Jackie back to her flat and make sure she was alright before they headed home themselves. Home. It occurred to the Doctor that Rose hadn't officially moved in with him yet, hadn't even hinted at it, but he was worried pushing her would actually push her away from him. So he didn't mention it. He wouldn't mention it. It seemed like a taboo subject to them, the idea of moving in together, of sharing a flat, becoming a- for all intents and purposes- family. The Doctor had lost his family, and the last person Rose had shared a flat with had turned violent. They still had nightmares sometimes, and they were worse when they were tired. So, it was to no surprise to the Doctor that, at almost 7pm, Rose began shaking and whimpering. She'd dozed off some time before, somewhere in between the Von Trapp family escaping Austria and Dorothy squashing the Wicked Witch's sister with her house. Bank holiday films really were rubbish. However, that wasn't the Doctor's biggest worry at that moment; his biggest worry was his girlfriend, whimpering and twisting and turning on the sofa beside him. More than once when she'd had nightmares he'd tried to wake her up, only to be slapped by a terrified Rose who'd been convinced he was in her nightmare. He didn't like being slapped, of course he didn't, but at that moment in time, the Doctor saw no other option. So he tugged Rose into a more upright position and shook her slightly, calling her name.

"Rose? Rose, come on, wake up, it's just a nightmare."

The words had barely left his mouth when Rose's eyes shot open and she, inevitably, began lashing out, scrambling to get away from him. It took a few moments, with the Doctor gripping her arms and trying to reassure her, for Rose to settle down. As soon as she acknowledged just who was gripping her arms, Rose flushed in embarrassment.

"I… Uh, sorry…" she managed quietly. "Thought… Thought I was still dreamin'."

"How many times, Rose, you don't have to apologise," the Doctor sighed, shaking his head slightly. "We both have nightmares; we understand each other better than anyone."

Rose bit her lip, ducking her head and avoiding his caring gaze.

"Wanna talk about it?" the Doctor asked gently.

Rose shook her head, glancing up at him before ducking her head again.

"Not yet," she replied. "Maybe later."

The Doctor nodded, knowing that if- when- Rose was ready to explain her nightmare, she would, even if it was 3am the next morning. He'd be there to listen. He felt Rose settle back against him with a tired sigh.

"Back to work tomorrow, then," she murmured.

"Yep," the Doctor agreed quietly, "and only a few months until Martha leaves."

"It'll be weird with her gone," Rose mused, frowning at the TV as she thought of the bookshop without Martha. "Will we hire someone else to take her place?"

"Dunno," the Doctor responded, and Rose could tell he was frowning. "Donna might have my head if I do; she's convinced I'm running the shop into the ground."

"You are though, aren't you?" Rose asked, twisting in her seat to meet the Doctor's eyes. "We don't make a lot of money in the shop, and you've got yourself to pay as well as me, Martha, Donna and Mickey…"

Rose trailed off at that, and frowned.

"Do you pay Jack?" she asked.

The Doctor shrugged.

"I try to, but he doesn't always take the money. I think he does it on a basis of how much he thinks we need his help. If we're desperate, then he won't take money, says he'll do it as a favour, but if it's more just because it'll be nice to have an extra pair of hands around to help change displays or whatever, he'll let me pay him," the Doctor explained calmly.

Rose blinked. She wasn't sure she'd ever figure Jack out.

"Right, anyway," Rose continued with a slight shake of her head to clear her thoughts, "Donna told me ages ago- _months ago_- that the shop was losing money, that you weren't making enough. How come the shop's still going?"

"I… I may have a… Back-up supply, if you will, that Donna doesn't know about. Actually, no one knows about it. Except me. And now you," the Doctor explained evasively.

"So, what, you've got a secret stash of money?" Rose asked.

The Doctor rubbed at the back of his neck, a move Rose had come to realise he did when he was nervous or embarrassed.

"Sort of, yeah," he admitted after a while. "Had it years. Donna is insistent that the business isn't making money, because it's not. I mean, there's the damp in the storage room that needs sorting, two years ago the roof needed fixing, the year before that the front window was smashed… We haven't actually made a profit in the shop for years, but… The extra money I have, that's how I pay everyone. It's… It's sort of an emergency fund, something to dip in to if things are getting really tough. I've been dipping into it more and more recently, to pay bills, to pay the wages and stuff…"

"But how can you afford it?" Rose asked with a frown.

The Doctor, however, didn't respond. He merely grinned as she yawned and tugged her to her feet.

"I think, Miss Tyler, it's time for you to go to bed," he announced cheerily.

Rose wanted to protest, to ask more about this hidden stash of money he had, but she knew it was hard for the Doctor to be open around people, that he was still adapting to sharing his flat, that she shouldn't push him. So, she allowed him to lead her to the bedroom and, five minutes later, she was fast asleep.


End file.
